We treated 166 infants and children with 177 hemangiomas with the flas
hlamp-pumped pulsed dye laser (FPDL, 585 nm, 450 mu s, 5 mm 0). The he
mangiomas were classified as initial, superficial, cutaneous-nodular,
and compound (cutaneous-subcutaneous) lesions according to the clinica
l involvement. After one treatment (n=124), good results (>75% clearan
ce) were obtained in 56% of the initial and in 36% of the nodular lesi
ons. With repeated treatment sessions (n=82), good results were achiev
ed in 63% of the initial, in 67% of the superficial and in 70% of the
nodular angiomas. Complete resolution requiring one or more treatment
sessions was reached in 44% of the initial, in 42% of the superficial
and in 16% of the nodular lesions. In compound lesions, only the cutan
eous part responds to treatment owing to the limited penetration depth
of the laser light. In our opinion, early FPDL therapy of most initia
l and/or rapidly growing hemangiomas should be recommended, especially
since this therapy is fast, has few side effects and can even be used
in newborns.